Communion service



p 9, .1958 o. F. DINGELDEIN 2,851,154

COMMUNION SERVICE 2 sheets-sheet- 1 Filed Aug. 15, 1956 Sept. 9, 1 958 COMMUNION SERVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 15 1956 2,851,154 COMMUNION SERVICE Otto F. Dingeldein, St. Louis County, Mo. Application August 13, 1956, Serial No. 603,664 4 Claims. (Cl. 206-19) This invention relates to communion services, and with regard to certain more specific features, to such services adapted to be stacked preparatory to serving.

Among the several objects of the invention may be noted the provision of a two-piece, compact, separable and sanitary communion service adapted for stacking prior to serving; the provision of a tray of the class described, the pieces of which may conveniently be removed from a stack and served, without any substantial danger of separation of its parts; the provision of a tray of the class described in which the cups are supported in a manner to encourage progressive marginal removal from a supported group of them without interference with others of the group; and the provision of a combination of cups and seats therefor designed to minimize clatter during service. Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises the elements and.

combinations of elements, features of construction, and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the structures hereinafter described, and the scope of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawings, in which one of various possible embodiments of the invention is illustrated, I

Fig. 1 is a plan view of my new service, showing a single cup in place and parts of an upper diaphragm element being broken away to expose a lower tray element;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1, showing in dotted lines additional cups where missing on the top of Fig. 1; and,

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged detail section of a cup in its seat, being taken on line 33 of Fig. 1.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, numerals 1 indicate trays, each of which is constituted by an outermost peripheral bead 3, surrounding a circular right-angular seat 5, and having an inwardly and downwardly directed portion 7 ending in a supporting flange 9. Within the flange 9 is a vertical circular wall 11, supporting an elevated downwardly and inwardly stepped bottom 13. The steps are annular and horizontal, being shown at 15, 17 and 19.

Adapted to telescope with each tray 1 is a removable diaphragm 21 having an outermost cylindric flange 23 adapted to telescope snugly with the right-angular seat 5. Within the flange 23 is an annular trough 25 forming a finger grip portion. The diaphragm is provided within the annular trough 25 with a downwardly and inwardly stepped arrangement composed of fiat annular steps 27, 29 and 31. The arrangement is such that when a diaphragm 21 is telescoped into position upon a tray 1, the stepped annuli 15, 17, 19 and 27, 29 and 31 are respectively parallel and spaced apart at a distance to receive cups to be described.

An assembled pair 1, 21 is that which is handled in service, being adapted to be stacked as shown in Fig, 2. wherein the lower flanges 9 of the trays rest within a rightangular step 33 formed in the diaphragm between the portion 25 and the outermost annulus 27 therein. The arrangement is such that the fingers of a hand may be inserted between assemblies as suggested by the darts F, with the thumbs resting in an annulus 25. Thus as each assembly is handled in passing, the parts 1 and 21 are automatically held together. On the other hand, for cleaning purposes, the trays and diaphragms 21 may readily be separated.

Punched into the annuli 27, 29 and 31 are downwardly bulging and inwardly directed seats 35, 37 and 39, in the bottoms of which are openings 41, 43 and 45, respectively. As shown, each seat is constituted by a downwardly directed sleeve portion and an inwardly directed flange portion. The openings 41 are for the reception of lower button-like bulges 47 of cups 49. The bulges 47 extend from circular seats 51, located beneath the inwardly converging sides 53 of the cups. This arrangement of downwardly directed, inwardly flanged openings and cooperating buttons on the cup bottoms is superior to former arrangements in that it considerably reduces and muflies the usual clatter associated with inserting and removing communion cups from their supports. In addition, all rocking movements of the cups in response to inadvertent lateral presures on them are prevented, without interfering with their ready removal by vertical movements. It will-be understood that the cups, like the tray and diaphragm members, may be composed of metal such as aluminum, silver or the like, or the cups in any event, may be made of one of the molded plastics.

As will be seen from Fig. 2, the parallel-stepped arrangement between the elevated bottoms Of the trays 1 and the diaphragms results in the cups being compactly confined when the tray and diaphragm assemblies are stacked. Another advantage of the stepped arrangement, wherein the outer steps are progressively higher than the successive inner ones, is that when an assembly of a tray and diaphragm is served to a communicant, the eyes are mostly attracted to the elevated cups of the outer circle. This encourages selection for removal from such an outer circle. Thus the diaphragm is depleted of cups successively from the outside to the inside, overreaching to the center cups for removal being discouraged, and thus minimizing interference between hands, coat sleeves, etc., and cups.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous results attained.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

l. A communion service adapted for stacking of units thereof, each unit comprising a tray and a removable diaphragm for cups, said tray having an upper marginal downwardly recessed portion adapted telescopically and removably to receive for alignment the margin of said diaphragm and having a side sloping downward and inward from .said recessed portion, a downwardly directed flanged portion within said inwardly sloping portion, a wall extending up from within said flanged portion, an elevated bottom within said lower flanged portion and supported marginally by said wall, said botom consisting of successive substantially flat circular steps in descending order of elevation from outside to inside, said dia" phragm consisting within its margin of successive substantially flat circular steps also in descending order of elevation from outside to inside, said steps in the dia phragm having rings of openings therein adapted to receive said cups in descending circular order from outside to inside, and a circular shoulder extending up from the diaphragm andsurrounding theouterrnoststep of the diaphragm; said shoulder, being adapted. internally to receive a lower flange of a tray for alignment purposes upon stacking'of. one unit on.anotherwhereby said flanged portion rests upon the outermost circular step of the diaphragm.

2. A communion-service made according to claim 1, wherein the peripheral portion of the diaphragm Wiihlll its margin and outside of the-outermost'step thereof is constituted by an annular depression.

3. A communion service made according to claim 1, wherein, the margin of the diaphragm :isconstituted by a downwardly directed flange adapted to rest on said recessed portion.

4. A communion servicesadapted for stacking units thereof, each unit comprising'a-tray, a removable diaphragm, cups inthe diaphragm, said tray having an upper marginal downwardly recessed. portion adapted telescopically and removably to. receive for alignment the margin of said diaphragm and. having a side sloping downward and inward Lfrom. saidtrecessed portion, a

downwardly directed flanged'portion within said inwardly sloping portion, a wall extendingup from within said flanged portion, an elevated -bottom within said lower flanged portion and supported marginally by said Wall, said bottom consisting of successive substantially fiat circular steps in descending order of elevation from outside to inside, said diaphragm consisting within its margin of successive substantially fiat circular steps also in descending order of elevation from outside to inside, said steps in the diaphragm having rings of openings therein adapted to receive said cups in descending circular order from outside to inside, a circular shoulder eXtending up from the diaphragm and surrounding the outermost step of the diaphragm, said shoulder being adapted internally to receive a lower flange of a tray for alignment purposes upon stacking of one unit upon another whereby said flanged portion rests upon the outermost circular step of the diaphragm, each of said openings being formed by a downwardly directed sleeve portion and an inwardly directed flange portion, each of said cups having a downwardly converging side extending from an upper margin to a lower portion and having a button-like protrusion extending from within a seat around said lower portion and adapted to pass with slight clearance one of said openings, said seat resting within said sleeve and upon said flange portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 539,264 Hall May 1-4, 1895 697,247 Harris Apr. 8, 1902 966,258 Sochurek Aug. 2, 1910 1,061,026 Thomas May 6, 1913 1,973,447 Schroeder Sept. 11, 1934 2,203,540 Montgomery June 4, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS 535,565 Germany Oct. 12, 1931 684,227 Great Britain Dec. 10, 1952 

